Currently, a variety of different environmental conditions can affect or damage electronic equipment and thereby cause tremendous expense, inconvenience, and a decrease in efficiency. For example, fluctuations in temperature, pressure, humidity, and other conditions can cause the electronic equipment to function abnormally, sustain damage, or be rendered inoperable. Different types of electronic equipment can have varying ranges of environmental conditions at which they are able to operate properly. As an illustration, some servers have a maximum allowed temperature range of between 59 to 90 degrees Fahrenheit, while having an optimal performance range between 68 and 77 degrees Fahrenheit. If the temperature falls outside the maximum allowed temperature range, it can cause the servers to malfunction.
Thus, a variety of solutions have been created in order to effectively regulate the conditions affecting electronic equipment. Such solutions can include, for example, providing air conditioning, fire protection and prevention systems, and other similar means for controlling environmental conditions. One of the most common configurations involves using data centers, which include cabinets for storing servers or other electronic equipment mounted in rows within in the cabinet. However, the processors and other hardware contained within the servers or other electronic equipment are frequently exposed to detrimental environmental conditions such as overheating or humidity. If the temperature and/or other environmental conditions are not effectively controlled, those relying on the servers for effective communications can experience interruptions in service.
In order to effectively control the environmental conditions, it often involves having to use a powerful air conditioning units and/or a significant number of fans to generate continuous air flow across the electronic equipment to keep the environmental conditions in allowable ranges. Additionally, raised floor subsystems are often utilized to channel cool air through inlets in the cabinets so as to cool the electronic equipment. Although such solutions provide a means for regulating the environmental conditions, there is often a tremendous expense with having to construct such systems at each location where electronic equipment is housed. Furthermore, certain configurations for housing the equipment at some locations may be entirely different and/or not be readily compatible with configurations at other locations. This further increases costs and inconvenience. As more different and powerful technologies come into existence and users' performance expectations increase, it becomes even more important to effectively regulate environmental conditions affecting such technologies.